Put Our Love to Use
by JannP
Summary: Valentines Day is a downer for Will this year, but he encourages the kids to express themselves with a variety of results.  Traditional pairings...ish.
1. Prologue: Pour Your Heart Out

_*A/N: Originally I was going to post this over Valentines week with the last chapter on the proper day. I am not much for mushy, romantic anything so it was as big of a shock to me as it was to anyone when this story idea took hold. It follows canon as I see fit and digresses as I see fit, so I'm not sure if it even counts as AU or not. It's all traditional coupling and takes place in what would be real time without regard for spoilers. I'm thinking it will be five parts and maybe an epilogue, but it's only about half written so I don't know exactly how it's going to come out. _

_Thanks to Lizzie for her encouragement, editing, and general rocking. I'm trying super hard to persuade her to post something here because it's way better than my writing! Thanks to everyone else for reading and replying and being awesome._

_*Disclaimer: I own nothing._

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**Put Our Love to Use**

**Prologue: Pour Your Heart Out**

_ Song used: Use Somebody – Laura Jansen_

Will Schuester sighed heavily as he walked down the hall. He was too busy eyeing the Valentine's decorations warily to notice exactly where in the school he was, even though he should've been headed in a direct line from his Spanish classroom to the choir room for glee club with New Directions.

As he looked at the foil and paper lace decorations announcing the girls' choice Sweethearts dance that would be one week from Saturday, he wondered if he had even realized the significance in naming the group 'New Directions' as he had done a year and a half ago. It seemed like they were all (sadly, he was using his high school students as a basis of comparison on relationship success) going different directions, but he was on the only one who _hated _the path he was on now.

It hadn't been all that long ago that he was happily married, starting up the glee club in a search for some long-hidden spark in his life, and then there was the baby on the way and all the joy and terrifying responsibility that came with it. It had all come apart so quickly, like he had tugged on one thread a little too hard and the whole thing had come unraveled.

Most people didn't use Valentine's Day as a day to take stock, but he wasn't most people. And most people didn't have all manner of anniversaries (former anniversaries now) that fell on that date. The date they had kissed after his sixteen year old self asked her sixteen year old self to be his; the year he had proposed, in a nod to that anniversary. The following year when they had married. He shook his head. Yeah, he was reasonably certain he would never view that holiday with anything romantic or good attached to it again.

But he was ready. He was ready to be in love again, and working in a high school day after day was not helping matters any. Sure, the overwhelming majority of the relationships that played out in front of him on a daily basis didn't last, wouldn't last. He was unusually close to his Glee kids and had stood by to both help them through and teach them some hard lessons. Using his insider knowledge, he was sure at least one or two of those pairs would be fine because they always took the advice of more experienced people—their parents, their teachers, their counselor. Their counselor who had shredded his heart and now had what appeared to be a solid marriage of her own. He wanted to scream swear words at the top of his lungs, but it wasn't like he could wish her anything less.

Someday though, the kids would graduate and actually go on to be success stories and maybe even failures sometimes and when they were gone, then what? Would _he _be fine? He could really use somebody. Emma had pulled the rug out from under him so swiftly that he'd needed time to regain his balance. More than one girl had called him out on that, and now there was exactly one left that had any possibility at all: Shelby Corchran. He still had her number, she was no longer directing Vocal Adrenaline so there would be no conflict of interest. Maybe he should call her, but there was something that echoed back to him through the recent months' uncertainty, something telling him to wait on that and oddly enough it was Finn' voice.

_And then there was this whole thing with her biological mother. Rachel's adopted, did you know that? I mean, you probably did because it's pretty obvious two dads don't make a baby the normal way. But anyway, that whole mess with Jesse was all tangled up in the mess with her mom and I think she is probably still really screwed up about it. Who does that, who says they don't want anything to do with their daughter because they've missed too much already? Her daughter is Rachel, for crying out loud. She's so fucking lucky. Um, sorry. She's just, really lucky. And she doesn't even seem to care._

As Finn's long-winded frustration came back to Schue, he knew there was no way he could call Shelby if she would treat her own flesh and blood so harshly, but more especially because it was Rachel. He had a stake in Rachel's well-being. He had to take her side, even if it wasn't a matter where sides were drawn. When he said he was unusually close to his Glee kids, he meant it, and he had been especially more friendly with Finn, even moreso since their return from Winter break. He had really identified with Finn during the whole friend and girlfriend cheating and lying about pregnancy thing. Finn had tied himself in knots over the possibility that he'd ruined Quinn's rep—only to have his ruined in the process and without warning. Say whatever you would about Rachel, because there were plenty of things to say—Schue had no doubt she would never do anything like that to Finn, in large part because she was the only person who had been honest with him as soon as she'd found out the truth about Quinn and Puck. The rest of the team had known—apparently for some time—and only she'd had the courage to speak. She was a _real_ friend for those lucky enough not to be trampled by her. Rachel was ambitious and sometimes rash, but she was never cold, calculating and manipulative. She was just really bad at seeing the possible consequences when she so naively saw only one possible outcome (and usually one that was to her benefit).

When Finn had talked his ear into a bloody stump about his newest problems, which was always unexpected given that Finn was usually not particularly talkative, they had all come as a surprise. Over the months Finn had dated Rachel, it seemed he had matured and started being able to express his feelings with some degree of willingness. In that case, maybe, he had also turned to Will because Will was quite literally the last friend Finn felt he could talk to after a string of such major incidents. Parents, who were finally relieving a life-long burden with the joy of being newlyweds in Finn's case, just didn't understand. Parents didn't want to hear about the sex, lies, and mistakes being experienced by their protégés; Will was immersed in it on a daily basis whether he was just observing or whether he was a confidante.

But after the holidays, Finn had renewed the mentor/mentee advice-seeking, had gone on to disclose a lot of what had gone down during the course of his and Rachel's relationship, and _of course_ it had imploded. They were still kids, they were dealing with adult issues too big for them to handle, and they were bound to break down sometimes. The fact that Rachel had turned to another boy, and especially her choice of whom, was surprising; the fact that she had immediately confessed and apologized was not. And now Schue thought, after some time to calm down and grow up a bit, maybe Finn and Rachel were headed back to being "that" couple. The one who goes the distance. The one in a million.

The same kind of thing he had once thought he had.

Of course, now that it wasn't so close to him and he was no longer 'in' it, he could see all the faults, the cracks, and the issues that had plagued them from the beginning. Terri was bat-shit crazy and he was always hungry enough for someone to love him, to be part of him, that he let her take advantage of it. He let her gradually kick him down enough that he didn't think he had anything to offer. Standing up, starting Glee, had been the first of several things that restored him to some semblance of the man he felt he was supposed to be.

But that part of him hadn't gone away. Was it wrong that he envied what his students had? It wasn't that he didn't want them to have it, but he was ready for his own big deal.

There was a song he loved to lose himself in that he had failed to secure performing rights for that summed it all up rather perfectly. He had gotten official notice just this morning that the artist turned him down—after being unable to find the official sheet music, he'd had to go through several channels—but it would've been the perfect outlet. Plus, with performing rights he could rearrange it into a style that would be more of a ballad than a rock song and it would take care of a Regionals competition requirement since that competition was looming.

Maybe he should just start trying to write his own music. It would certainly be easier that way, if he could get the kids to perform it. That would have to be a project for another time, though. For now, it would all come out a little too rated-R.

He sighed as he peeked inside the choir room on his arrival. A few of the kids were milling about; Rachel and Finn appeared to be sharing an apple and some unbearably cute and slightly nauseating heavy flirting was going on; Sam had pulled his guitar out and was strumming something with Quinn and Mercedes sitting by and listening, chatting casually. Artie looked like he was just arriving.

Because he had taught these kids for the better part of two years, he could tell how things would come together in the next few minutes. Puck and Santana would probably emerge from somewhere (because it had been a while since they'd done this and they seemed to have a pattern), straightening clothes and hairdos and whatnot before they ran in either at or slightly after the bell, earning disgusted looks from Quinn. It had been an extra long time since she gave them an audible scoff, and he supposed that was good. Tina would come in and sit next to Artie until Brittany arrived, usually late but with a note on Sue's letterhead that gave a poor explanation for the tardiness. Schue thought Brittany's increasing refusal to do underhanded deeds (after, the way he understood it, Artie had plead with her and carefully explained exactly what was going on) was a reason for her to be detained doing some sort of physical makeup. Sue had a bunch of exercise equipment in her office and could likewise often be heard through her megaphone demanding, boot-camp style, that someone 'drop and give her 57.'

The number always changed. It seemed like it was getting higher.

Mike would come in and sit down somewhere between Brittany and Tina, open a leather folder and start discussing choreography with Brittany and her eyes would light up. Will usually took a little longer than necessary if it was a day Brittany was particularly late, because it was fun watching the dancers talk so happily about something simple that bonded them as friends.

If he didn't snap to it soon enough, Rachel would stand up and start leading them through warm-up exercises. Any mix and match of the group paid attention at any given time. He had watched Finn gradually go from staring off into space with a slightly pained expression to being the only one who consistently paid attention when she tried to warm up the group. Just another sign they were close to revisiting familiar territory.

His eyes looked over the group one last time. Now that Kurt was gone, he needed a guy he could pair with Mercedes. Where could he possibly find someone like that? He sighed and stepped into the room, all of them eyeing him and greeting him with silent but individual motions that he smiled in response to.

Well, even if he hadn't secured the rights to the song necessarily, he could still play it for his kids and use it to introduce next week's assignment. He debated briefly between the rock version, certain the band kids that came in with them and were in the process of getting set up would know it; or using the more subdued, acoustic version provided by a Dutch girl.

He was not feeling like he rocked today. The subdued version would have to do. Should he demand acoustic covers as part of the assignment? He'd never really done anything that specific before. He had always left it up to them.

He moved to the spot behind the piano, but Rachel and Finn were always there early, functioning as co-captains, and getting anything he'd needed prepared. The music scattered over the enamel top was well-organized and laid out according to his specifications after the previous class.

Not that he had a system anywhere near as hyper-detailed as Rachel's. That girl was a filing _machine_. At the same time, only she seemed able to understand how she'd classified everything. He had to stifle a laugh to realize that Finn was catching on, which meant he truly understood how Rachel's brain worked. That couldn't have been easy to learn and he wondered why all the other kids seemed to think Finn was stupid.

Once he saw Puck and Santana scramble into the room, he moved to the bench seat on the piano and immediately hushed them all with something he didn't usually do—playing and singing to greet them. He poured his heart out in the song, almost forgetting where he was; that was exactly how he was going to word their assignment, too. He loved how it always came to him with a song.

_I've been roaming around,_

_I was looking down at all I see_

_Painted faced filled the places I can't reach_

_You know that I could use somebody._

_You know that I could use somebody._

_Someone like you, and all you know and how you speak_

_Countless lovers under cover of the street_

_You know that I could use somebody_

_You know that I could use somebody_

_Someone like you, oh-oh oh-oh_

_Someone like you oh-oh oh-oh_

_Off in the night,_

_While you live it up I'm off to sleep_

_Waging wars to shake the poet and the beat_

_I hope it's gonna make you notice_

_I hope it's gonna make you notice_

_Someone like me, oh-oh oh-oh_

_Someone like me, oh-oh, oh-oh yeah_

_I'm ready, I'm ready, I'm ready now_

_I'm ready, I'm ready, I'm ready now_

_Oh, someone like me_

_I've been roaming around, I was looking down at all I see…_

He let the last chord die on the piano, effectively trailing off after the particularly emotional song. He stayed on the bench, but turned to face them. All of them were watching him silently. He cleared his throat.

"What does that song, sung that way, mean to you?"

"Isn't that Kings of Leon?" Puck supplied dryly.

"They wrote it," Schue said. "There's a Dutch-American girl named Laura Jansen who covered it and I used her version. That's not my point, though."

"It's about loneliness," Quinn offered. "Wanting someone who is very unlike you to notice you."

He really wanted to miss the way her eyes casually landed to her right and on the back of Puck's head, just for a flash of an instant. There were some couples he hoped worked it out and other couples he hoped knew it wouldn't work and would leave it be.

"Good," Will said gently. He smiled. "It's a little different sentiment than most people are expressing this time of year."

"Yeah, Valentine's Day is still just a bunch of made up bullshit," Santana offered.

"And that word isn't on our vocabulary list this week," Schue joked weakly. "But I happen to agree with you. However, I know that the majority of your classmates do not feel the same way, so our assignment for next week is going to be an individual one."

Santana's face crumpled a little. "Are there enough Valentines songs for all of us to sing one?"

Schue shook his head. "That's not exactly what I'm after. The theme of the week will be 'Pouring your Heart Out'. Is there something you've been meaning to say? Wanting but not asking for?" He pointed in Puck's direction. "Nothing sexually explicit. We've discussed your limits."

Puck smirked and folded his arms tightly against his chest, but didn't say a word.

Brittany hesitated a little and raised her hand. Schue pointed at her, knowing her well enough to know she literally would not speak until he called on her in this instance. "What if I asked for everything I wanted for Christmas?"

Will smiled. He couldn't help it. That particular remark was tame but you just never knew exactly what you were going to get when Brittany raised her hand. "Well, think of something loving you could say to maybe Artie or Santana… or any other friend you might have a message for."

Brittany nodded, and turned to ask Artie a question but her whisper was more of a stage whisper than an actual whisper. "Are there any songs about blow jobs you like?"

This sent the room into a bit of an uproar. Puck was making suggestions, Quinn was shaking her head and trying furiously to explain to Brittany that love and sex weren't the same thing. Mercedes was laughing her big, awesome laugh and grabbing her phone to text Kurt about it. Rachel had turned to Finn and said something that made his face turn tomato-red. Will shook his head. He didn't even want to know.

"All right!" Will said, determined to get them back under control. He finally had to do a double-finger whistle in the corners of his mouth to call the room back to order. "Other items of business," he mentioned. "We still need a good ballad for Regionals." He cautiously looked over at Rachel, but she was still so busy teasing Finn she hadn't even noticed. And he was still red.

Good God. This assignment might actually kill him because he would vomit himself right to death on all their lovesickness and lame flirting. He kind of wished for a fleeting moment he could remember what it felt like to be sixteen years old, feeling like you actually had game because a pretty girl asked you to a dance. That all seemed so foreign to him now. He wished it could be that simple again. Then again, with his inside track to these kids, he knew their lives were anything but simple, exactly.

"So if anyone has any ideas, let me know. I left the filing room unlocked and the digital catalogue is all set up, so go ahead and see if you can think of what you'd like to do. Does anyone have this week's assignment left to perform before we go?" He looked around absently; he already knew they had all done their assignment, a co-ed mashup. But still nothing they could use for Regionals even though everyone had done very well.

One of two things was going to happen with the latest assignment: either he'd get something they could use immediately or he'd be so annoyed with the holiday he wouldn't care and could drink himself into a stupor over the holiday weekend.


	2. Chapter 1: I Don't Care Anymore

_**A/N: **__ This part was originally a one-parter and is what started this entire story. Every time I hear Boyce Avenue, I picture that Alejandro (the hunk of gorgeous man who is one of three brothers that formed the band) is Cory Monteith even though he doesn't look like him and only somewhat sounds like him. I can automatically see Finn singing this song just because Boyce Avenue covered it. I'm normally fanatical about the music I listen to anyway, but this is the only time I'll say this (maybe): go YouTube their cover of this song so you can see what I'm getting at. It's awesome—which is saying something because I capital-F-ucking hate Leona Lewis. _

_That being said, I'm starting to feel a little more at home here. I've coerced Paceismyhero into posting and reintroduced myself to Abigail Snow. Hello, ladies! They already know, but for everyone else: replying strokes my ego and I update faster. I'm just saying. Oh, and thanks to those who have already read, replied, favorited, followed, etcetera. _

**Chapter 1: I Don't Care Anymore**

_Song Used: Bleeding Love (Leona Lewis cover) by Boyce Avenue_

The nerves were bad enough as he paced around in front of Schue's office, the first arrival of any Glee kid to the last class of the day. The childish rhyme _last the best of all the game_ echoed through his mind and made him smile. As stupid as it sounded, it helped him relax and gave him focus. He blew a nervous breath out of his mouth and picked up the speed of his pacing.

Today was the day. He had been waiting and debating, never sure and feeling unprepared, for the better part of the last two months, and now he knew the time was right and all that was going to end.

He knew Rachel had been crushed when he "officially broke up" with her. The biggest way he knew, maybe, was that she hadn't actually mentioned it. As he had tentatively reached out, hesitating and almost going two steps back for every step forward in his typical way, he had been just waiting for it. Rachel would go into Diva-mode and tell him off. She was never quiet about her feelings. She was never quiet about any of it. Instead of doing as he expected though, she had stayed quiet.

She had thought for a long moment, a moment that felt like a week, when he had invited her to 'hang out' at the newly decorated house.

He knew she'd been there a couple of times with Kurt when he was home from school, messing around and trying some half-assed mash-ups because Kurt made her. They never did stuff like that at Dalton and it was driving him crazy. But out of respect, and out of fear of the possible yelling, he had stayed away while she was there. He had stayed in his room, catching up on back issues of Sports Illustrated (it was supremely unfair to look through the swimsuit issue when it was winter and the once-sunny world was frozen, he had decided eventually) and listening to loud, angry music in his iPod headphones to drown out the sound of singing because he just couldn't take hearing her sing, hearing her happy and still feeling so sad inside as he tried to figure everything out. She had stuck her face in his room when she left the last time, offering a brief wave and an even briefer smile. Before he could react other than opening his mouth and reaching for the earbuds, she was gone. No yelling. No words. Certainly not the apology or even the simple, friendly question he wanted so badly to ask. _How are you? _ She was just gone.

So finally, unable to take the silence anymore, he had invited her over and she took her time thinking before she issued a careful reply. "Do you really… do you _really_ want me to?"

She was so timid, so unsure. So un-Rachel-like. He knew he'd done that to her and he was genuinely sorry. It was true that he had asked for time and space, and she pushed too hard before she gave him what he needed. He had just never realized until that moment, until she was soft and careful right in front of him, maybe they had both been pushing and the tension had been holding everything up. It took both of them to keep their relationship going and when she'd stopped pushing, he kind of fell over and then he was really lonely.

He was not good at thinking about emotions this way.

"Yeah," he offered in a whisper, watching her as carefully as he was watching his own heart, looking inward for signs of trouble or signs that it was too much. Instead of that caged feeling, like he needed to pace and needed to be free, he just missed her. That was all. That was all that was left. He really, really missed her. His missed his friend. He missed his girlfriend. He missed the only person in his life who always spoke the truth. He missed her and he wanted her to hang out.

So they had eased into seeing each other again, taking their time and dancing around issues and being polite (sometimes literally because they were still the Glee leads after all, and once school started up they all had regionals on their minds). One night, though, he had been horsing around with her and comfortable in that way he could only ever be around her. Instead of unwrapping his straw, he had just pulled a bit of the end off and then blown the rest of the white paper wrapper off the straw and toward her face. She had laughed as she reached up to grab the trash away from her head; she twisted the paper around her fingers and looked at him with questions in her eyes. They were questions too big, too important for him to answer. But again, she had been very quiet and uncertain. Very un-Rachel-like. He knew again that he had done that to her, had made her like that. It was just a reminder of how far they'd come. And then she turned the big questions into her eyes into actual big questions and she looked to him for answers and he had to explain himself. She explained herself again, and what it ended up amounting to was they didn't have a whole lot to offer by way of new information, and they were both people who did things and then actually thought about them later. In not thinking a little bit ahead, they had hurt each other terribly.

That night, even though she was forty minutes late for curfew and had been getting 5-minute texts from the dads asking where she was because she hadn't left a note at all, they stayed at the restaurant and hashed everything out. He drove her home, and after she replied to the dads that she and Finn were chatting in the driveway, the text messages stopped but the conversation kept going.

He was pretty sure he saw her dads alternately looking out the window, no doubt making sure the car windows weren't too foggy or there wasn't a handprint pressed on them or something else like that, but he did slip two over on them: he held her hand _and_ he gave her a sweet little kiss goodnight. That had been almost a week ago.

Now, they didn't hold hands at school, but they walked so close while they chatted on their way to classes that the backs of their hands touched(usually not the same classes because most of hers had 'AP' after them while his did not—except chemistry. For some reason he totally got chemistry). He had brushed her hair back over her shoulder once or twice, and they had hung out nearly every night after they finished up extracurriculars and before homework. Sometimes she helped him with homework like she used to.

She entered the room, her bright pink folder full of music pressed tightly to her chest and she looked around. He recognized her clothes, the shirt anyway, as the spare she kept in her locker. Since the football team's decent showing, largely lead by him on total accident, he had not been the victim of any of the B-level football players' lame, mean tricks. By association, Rachel had also not been on their list.

It seemed that had stopped now that she wasn't officially dating the quarterback anymore and she had received the latest slushie facial. Her face was stripped clean (he was still not sure how she got the blue raspberry syrup out of her skin—the last time he'd caught a blue one to the face, he looked like a Smurf for most of glee), her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and she was still shivering a little. He knew it wasn't out of fear but because she always had trouble getting warm after she picked ice chunks off her skin, out of her hair…at some point she had also seemed embarrassed to reveal she never kept a spare bra in her locker because her locker had been broken into before, so if the slushie went down her shirt she couldn't change it. So he was sure she was cold through and through.

He shook his head, looking at her. He was going to kick Karofsky's ass—again. Maybe Sam would go in on it with him, even if he didn't have to be extra-badass to make up for his girlfriend's lack of social status. Finn slipped his arms out of his letterman's jacket and took the three steps to the door. Her eyes caught the movement and she looked over, giving him a small smile.

"Hey," she said simply. He wrapped the jacket around her shoulders and pulled the collar together, letting the entire thing wrap around her. She looked like a kid wrapped in a huge blanket. As he pulled the sides of the collar together, he used it as kind of a hook to pull her close and kiss her forehead. The skin under his lips was frosted and it wasn't fair.

"I'm gonna kill those guys."

Rachel had seen Kurt. Rachel had talked to Kurt quite a bit over the break, and she may not have known the details, but she knew who was responsible for Kurt wanting to transfer. "It's not worth it," she said simply.

Why was she always right? How had she found a way to both be the source of and override his hot head? He sighed and pulled her into him again.

"Was anyone with you?" Finn asked. Rachel pulled away from his hug and looked at him.

"No," she said and it came out disbelieving. For all the strides she'd made socially, she still walked down the hall alone most of the time. And she knew he knew it.

"Can I please at least just take a baseball bat to their cars?" He pleaded.

She smiled a little and moved away from him, using her hand to keep his jacket around her. Eventually, she bent down in front of the front row chair she normally occupied during class to place her Glee folder and her purse down on the hard plastic.

"Wouldn't the fact that it isn't yet baseball season tip them off that someone had an ulterior motive?"

"Do I care?"

"Finn!" She breathed. She turned to face him with fire in her eyes. It looked like she was hoping she wouldn't crack a smile.

"If you were with Puck, it wouldn't have happened at all," he said slowly.

"Yeah, but I wasn't so it isn't really worth discussing." She dropped tiredly into a chair. "I don't know what I was thinking auditioning for that community play at OSU-L. Now that rehearsals have started, I'm exhausted."

He frowned. He knew that wasn't something she would normally admit out loud so her next actions practically shocked him as she pulled a small blue and silver can out of her purse. She popped the top and the motion just looked _wrong_. He wasn't sure he'd ever seen her drink anything but water, and maybe the occasional coffee when she snuck a sip of his if he was drinking it black.

"What are you doing?" He asked. "Is that RedBull?"

She shook her head as she raised the can to her lips to take a long drink. She swallowed as she pulled it back down to her lap. "Sort of. It's like the earth-friendly version."

He sat down next to her. She didn't protest when he took the can out of her hands and studied it carefully. "Guru. How does it taste?" He asked. She was normally super sensitive about sharing drinks, even with him, because she claimed it was one of her secrets to not getting sick. She just flipped her hand in a motion for him to try it. After he had swallowed it (and it was just about as bad as your average energy drink but certainly no _worse_), he handed the can back to her. "Am I going to be able to keep up with you during rehearsal if you drink that?"

She rolled her eyes. "Please. This might just actually keep me sitting up in my chair."

He laughed. "You can lean on me if you need to." What the hell? He couldn't keep his voice from cracking. Not cool.

She smiled and looked at him for a long time, but didn't reply because all the other group members were starting to filter in. He allowed himself one more glance at her before he moved to the front up by the piano to start getting music and stuff ready as Mr. Schue had said he needed it at the end of last class. He'd take care of it and let her relax for a minute—if she even knew how to do that. Since she didn't move, it seemed like she might be learning.

The bell rang and Finn frowned. Where the hell was their teacher? Mr. Schue wanted Finn to sing first but he kind of had to be there for Finn to do it. Although the song he had chosen was specifically for Rachel to hear, he still wanted and needed a good grade on it; which he was going to get, but the teacher was kind of major in that plan. Once everything was prepared, he uncertainly sat back down next to Rachel and folded his arms to wait.

A few minutes later when he looked over at her she was turned away from him, dipping into her purse for something or other.

They were like two magnets, Finn and Rachel, constantly pulled apart but eventually coming back together. He shook his head like his brain was an Etch-a-Sketch and he could erase the thought. If there was anything he had learned, it was that there was no science to this. He also knew that, despite their best intentions, they would hurt each other again. That's just the way it was, but he had survived this last round. All the bruises were gone, old scars were healed, and now he just wanted to step across that super thin line back into the brightest place his life had ever been. It could be that easy.

He totally ought to slip Schue a five or something just for this opportunity. Schue had even agreed to help him out. First it was by teaching him to play the chords, but when the ultra girly song had proved too hard for him to learn in the only three private sessions his over-packed schedule would allow, Schue had offered to just play it.

It was definitely better than going to Puck or Sam, the resident guitar players. Because as he had uncertainly talked over the situation with their trusted teacher, he knew this was going to be all about swallowing his pride. Mr. Schuester had imparted the lesson that true love has no pride. After that conversation, Finn had heard a band of three brothers, who were notorious for their acoustic covers, playing on a local radio station during his morning run the next day and he knew immediately that he wanted to do their version of that song. Asking Puck for help would basically be like forking a testicle or maybe both over to his somewhat friend, especially right now. Puck had actually apologized over the winter break, without giving too many details, and Finn wondered for a long time who started and who stopped their makeout session. Once he had heard the song, he realized that it didn't matter anymore. None of it mattered anymore. He wasn't good at a lot of things, but he was good at being with Rachel. He liked being with her. He loved her. There was no going back or moving on. She was the endgame. She always had been.

Of course, the other lesson he'd been quick to learn was that relationship were a two-sided deal. He had to do his best not to treat her badly. The more he thought about it, he knew other things had often come before Rachel—Glee, football, not playing football, his reputation, his own pride and lies—and he wanted to make sure it wasn't going to happen again. So as girly as it was, he was going to rock this song and he was going to watch her and he was going to kiss her at the end.

He could live with his reputation being 'good boyfriend to Rachel Berry.' It was the only thing that mattered to him anymore.

Schue finally walked in, running a few minutes late, and nodded to Finn as he walked. It was the first official day of their Valentine's Day assignment, and they had already discussed that Finn would be going first. He felt like his message was the most urgent, because if he knew Rachel (and boy, did he know Rachel) she would want some time to think before she issued her musical reply and this way she would have all the way until Friday to reply. He could only hope it wouldn't be a sequel to the "Gives You Hell" song. His eyes flicked to her again, but this time she wasn't bent over. She was looking right at him. As well as he knew her, he hadn't seen that look before and it almost made him puke all over his shoes and then beat a hasty retreat so he wouldn't have to lay himself out this way.

But where would the fun be in that?

He offered her a tiny and nervous smile before he wiped his slightly sweaty palms over his jeans before he stood up. He looked down, the McKinley basketball jersey draped over a t-shirt and his lanky frame like it always was on game days. Since it was a home game, the jersey was red. It kind of already looked like he was bleeding a little bit; like he was in costume. Schue emerged from his office with his guitar in hand and approached as Finn mashed his hands together and looked out over his teammates.

"You guys think I'm crazy. I get it. I just don't care anymore," he said simply. His eyes darted nervously back to Rachel, sitting in front and off to his right just beside his vacant seat with a calm, puzzled expression on her face.

_Come on, Rach. You know me. You know what this is even though I haven't opened my mouth._

He looked over his shoulder at Schue and nodded slightly. He'd had some trouble with the entrance so he paid extra attention during the first two, quick beats and he searched his memory desperately to find the exact note and the opening words. He tucked his hands into his pockets, unable to look directly at her just yet as he opened his mouth, starting out rather timidly until he was sure he'd gotten it right from the start.

_Closed off from love, I didn't need the pain_

_Once or twice was enough, and it was all in vain_

_Time starts to pass, before you know it you're frozen_

_But something happened for the very first time with you_

_My heart melted to the ground, found something true_

_And everyone's looking 'round thinking I'm going crazy_

He echoed the little 'yeah' that initiated a little more rhythm picking up and dared to look at Rachel. Her face wasn't quite smiling, but she was wide-eyed and listening intently. That was all he could ask for. After all, it wasn't the first time she'd heard his worry about what everyone else thought. It was the first time he was ready, really ready, to go beyond that. He couldn't help it as he started to move a little in time with the song, his eyes still all over her.

_But I don't care what they say, I'm in love with you_

_They try to pull me away but they don't know the truth_

_My heart's crippled by the vein that I keep on closing_

_You cut me open and I…_

_Keep bleeding, I keep, keep bleeding love_

_Keep bleeding love, keep keep bleeding love_

_You cut me open_

He was getting into it now, relaxing a little as her lips started to tilt toward a smile and her cheeks started to turn a little pink. He had pulled his hands out of his pockets and was (as she had said once during rehearsal about the motion, "_rather adorably—now knock it off_") drumming on his thighs as he started to groove a little more. The next chorus slowed a bit and his gaze shifted from her and over the other members of the club.

_Trying hard not to hear but they talk so loud_

_Their piercing sounds fill my ears, trying to fill me with doubt_

_Yeah, I know that the goal is to keep me from falling_

His hands were moving around his head as he took in the familiar faces that were sprawled out. Brittany was moving in her seat, bopping her head back and forth and looking at Artie with a faint smile. Mercedes was watching, arms folded, and what could only be described as undecided. He was starting to tread on her territory, after all, and she had never really considered him able. Puck was watching with his well-practiced disinterest, looking like there was a sarcastic and cutting remark chopping his tongue off. Santana appeared a little undecided but mostly bored and was examining her nails. Tina and Mike were rocking to the song. No, literally, they were rocking back and forth in their chairs in some sort of a bumper car game that it appeared Mike was losing on purpose. Quinn had her arms folded primly and he understood, sort of, how it was possible all the open declarations of love between he and Rachel were a little hard on her. Sam's eyes were darting around the room a lot like Finn's were, taking it all in, with a different perspective.

He took it all in with a quick sweep of his eyes over the choir room, but then he looked at Rachel again. He just couldn't take his eyes away from her for that long, and as he fought the threatening smile so that he could, you know, form actual words as he sang, her smile opened up and blazed bright enough for the both of them. It was like the sun came out while he sang the next words straight from the bottom of his heart, meaning them no less than one-hundred and ten percent.

_But nothing's greater than the rush that comes with your embrace_

_And in this world of loneliness I see your face_

_And everyone around me thinks that I'm going crazy…maybe_

As they opened up into the last verse, Finn was literally singing his heart out, rocking back and forth on his feet in place in time to the guitar-only beat. Although he couldn't see exactly what Schue was doing behind him, Finn knew from their practices and from the sound that Schue was pounding on the strings expertly, providing a strong base for the song and rocking it thoroughly. Even though it was acoustic, and it was a chick song, and he was singing it for Valentine's Week and there was absolutely nothing manly about any of it, he felt like it was his inner rock star coming out.

_But I don't care what they say, I'm in love with you_

_They try to pull me away but they don't know the truth_

_My heart's crippled by the vein that I keep on closing_

_You cut me open and I…_

_Keep bleeding, I keep, keep bleeding love_

_I keep bleeding love, I keep, keep bleeding love_

_You cut me open and I_

_You cut me open and I_

_Keep bleeding love_

As Schue played the last note then quickly stood up, the girls in the room cheered and the boys' eyes shifted uncomfortably at the emotional precedent he had set.

But true to the lyrics, he blocked them out. It didn't matter. It didn't matter that the original artist screeched her way through that song, and probably still did it at least once a day for an audience somewhere. It didn't matter that he was red-faced and breathing a little hard after reaching for higher notes than he normally sang. He looked at Rachel, who hadn't cheered and hadn't even moved. None of it mattered if she didn't get it. For the first time ever he smiled to see tears standing in her eyes. He made her cry, in a good way and in the right way for once, and it made him feel like a man.

He felt like _her_ man.


	3. Chapter 2: The Theme of the Day

**Chapter 2: The Theme of the Day is Prostitution**

_Songs Used: You Are My Sunshine—Johnny Cash _

_Lost Myself in Search of You – Matt Nathanson_

* * *

_A/N: I took the Matt Nathanson lyrics from his At the Point version of the song; if you YouTube it, every version you find is different. He's hilarious. I recommend him 110%, but only if your ears are old enough to handle it without bleeding. There may be a disclaimer or a contract you have to sign. I'm pretty sure you also have to show photo i.d._

_Also, my version of Puck here is loosely based on a Tucker Max book I just finished; he has several accounts of a friend he refers to as 'Slingblade' who has been very damaged by a girlfriend and thinks all women are whores. When I got to thinking about how the women of glee club have actually treated him… well, if he had real emotions somewhere in there (I'm sure he does or I would not love him like I do), at some point I think he would end up like Slingblade and would be calling them all out on it. In song. I do not think he would actually utter something as sensitive as the main title of the song because he would view it as self-castration. Then again, he sang Sweet Caroline so I can never be sure._

* * *

Finn saw Rachel enter the cafeteria just long enough to toss the empty drink can in the recycling bin before she turned and marched right back out. He frowned; it was the same kind of can she'd had the other day and he knew she had been at her play rehearsal late last night. He hoped she wasn't working too hard. He had waited (and it was really, super-uncomfortable by the way) at her house until nearly ten o'clock. Things were still tentative at the Hudson-Hummel household after his and Kurt's falling out so his curfew was really early, especially on school nights. He didn't dare mess with Burt because his mom had been so sad about it all and so afraid it would ruin the wedding. So he sucked it up, he apologized, he sang Kurt a song…and now he came home early and stayed home more. His mom seemed happy with it. The only problem was that she kept trying to talk to him about his relationship with Rachel; the only person he wanted to talk to about all that was _Rachel_.

Anyway, he'd been pretty anxious about Rachel's reaction to his song. She had cried a little, and had seemed out of it as they danced through the rest of rehearsal that day, but he hadn't actually talked to her. She never ate lunch in the cafeteria, but when she didn't specifically seek him out before her meal, he didn't know where she went. There were about twelve different places in the school she would hide; by the time he even found her, lunch would have been over. Seeing her now seemed like a good chance to catch up to her and talk for a minute, maybe even get a sense of where she was at with the whole thing.

She had drama after lunch and before Glee, but it was right across the hall from the choir room, so he headed that direction. He scowled deeply as he saw Karofsky, Azimio, and two other guys from the football team with slushies in their hands, walking toward Rachel. She must've seen them too because her feet slowed to a stop as Finn saw her. Dave caught sight of Finn just beyond, though.

Finn was scowling and cracking his knuckles; he hoped it was threatening. He wasn't sure how to physically threaten. He had grown so fast that he was still kind of getting used to his body even three years later and he wasn't sure how to seem intimidating. He knew how to actually pound the shit out of someone, sure, but he didn't know how to just make them think he would if they dared to piss him off.

It must've worked though because the four boys kept right on walking, Dave giving Finn the evil eye as he passed. Finn knew Karofsky was considering a change of victim, but in the end Finn was sure it was, like, against some sort of moral code to bully the football player who was partially responsible for your shocking victory.

Rachel seemed a little uncertain. She was still standing where she had stopped short, and her head turned to see who was actually responsible for stopping the attack. Her eyes got big as Finn strolled up beside her.

"That guy is seriously an asshole," he intoned in a frustrated mutter. He had been itching to take the second-stringer down a few pegs for a long time; he just wasn't sure how to go about it without getting expelled.

She smiled a little. "Yes," she agreed. Now that she was certain she was going to stay warm and dry, she resumed walking toward the drama room. His frown deepened as he slid his hands into his jeans pockets and followed. It wasn't like her to agree with his more foul-mouthed assessments.

_Although if she'd spent any time with Puck she was quite likely used to swea_—never mind.

Regardless of what had happened before, he was ready to move on. They had already arrived at the drama room and she turned to face him as the bell echoed through the halls to signal the end of the lunch period.

"Did you need something?" She asked, her tone neutral and her eyes intently focused on him but also not giving anything away.

He shook his head, unable to form an excuse. "Nah. I just wanted to say hello."

"Hello," she offered, her voice chirpy and her smile genuine. She took a small breath and it was back to business. "Okay. I need to talk to Mr. Webster about something so I have to go in a few minutes early." She reached a hand out and felt the soft leather sleeve of his letterman's jacket.

She knew his locker combination and had returned it this morning. There had been a purple note pinned to it, her unsteady handwriting conveying her _thank you_ and a gold purple star at the bottom. He had tucked it into the jacket pocket, feeling immediately lame for keeping it but still wanting to do it.

"I'll see you next period, okay?" Her voice lowered, softened somehow as she felt his arm underneath the thick fabric.

"Okay," he agreed quietly and watched her go. Maybe she would have her song response for him today, but he kind of doubted it. She still didn't seem totally certain around him.

It was only an hour and some change later that they were sitting in the choir room and he had his chance to find out, but it wasn't to be.

Before Schue asked who was ready, Brittany was bouncing in her chair. When he actually did ask, she volunteered with an "Ooh, ooh, me!" that so amused everyone Schue finally just gestured for her to come up to the front.

She took a deep breath and stood up straight before she dropped her head a little to smile at Artie and started with an a capella rendition of a song every single one of them knew. It was no secret to the group that she wasn't a fantastic singer, but she had clearly practiced and improved. That did not diminish their confusion and slight horror.

The other night dear, as I lay sleeping  
I dreamed I held you in my arms  
But when I awoke, dear, I was mistaken  
So I hung my head and I cried.

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine  
You make me happy when skies are gray  
You'll never know dear, how much I love you  
Please don't take my sunshine away

I'll always love you and make you happy,  
If you will only say the same.  
But if you leave me and love another,  
You'll regret it all some day_  
_

Each of the glee kids, including Artie, looked around wide-eyed and all wondering the same thing. Did she really understand what she was singing? The first couple of verses weren't so bad, but there was a reason mothers singing to their children never went further. It seemed the answer was a resounding 'she has no idea' as she continued.

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine  
You make me happy when skies are gray  
You'll never know dear, how much I love you  
Please don't take my sunshine away

You told me once, dear, you really loved me  
And no one else could come between.  
But not you've left me and love another;  
You have shattered all of my dreams.

About this point in the song, her voice faltered and she started looking around. Santana was in the back of the room, actually looking sympathetic and making a vague slashing motion across her throat. Once Brittany caught that, her hesitance seemed to increase even more.

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine  
You make me happy when skies are gray  
You'll never know dear, how much I love you  
Please don't take my sunshine away

In all my dreams, dear, you seem to leave me  
When I awake my poor heart pains.  
So when you come back and make me happy  
I'll forgive you dear, I'll take all the blame.

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine  
You make me happy when skies are gray  
You'll never know dear, how much I love you  
Please don't take my sunshine away

Brittany seemed to have at least caught the hesitance in the room and her finish was much less certain. She looked at Artie and smiled a brief flash before she bit her lip nervously and waited. Eventually, everyone clapped in earnest. They seemed to realize that not giving her positive feedback would be like kicking Rainbow Brite and even the meanest and most competitive kids amongst them couldn't do it.

As was Mr. Schue's habit, instead of criticizing, he found something positive he could latch onto in her performance. "Brittany… you stayed on key the entire time singing all by yourself. You must've practiced a lot."

She smiled and nodded before she bounced back to her chair, but the smile fell when she looked at Artie.

"Will you tell me why everyone was so uncomfortable while I was singing?"

Artie looked at her. "Didn't you tell me your dad used to sing that to you after your mom left?" He asked slowly. She nodded and his voice dropped. "That song is about cheating, Britt."

"Oh!" She said, her hands flying to her surprised mouth. "That's not what I meant at all!"

There was a collective sigh of relief and everyone laughed a little. As Mr. Schue relaxed, he looked around the room.

"Okay, anyone else?" He asked, opening his hands up and waiting as he looked on expectantly. No one had been as amped up to perform as Finn, but he had still expected more than one student per day.

Finally, Puck huffed out a breath and moved like he was going to rise from the chair. "Well, if the theme of the day is prostitution, I have one."

Schue's eyes widened. "Um… okay."

Schue realized in that moment he had kind of painted himself in a corner. What was it he had said exactly? They should say what they had on their mind. Man, giving that kind of carte blanche was dangerous with this group. He would have to remember that. As he settled into one of the plastic chairs like the ones his other students occupied, he leaned back in dread and uncertainty. Especially with that introduction.

As Puck donned the guitar, Artie looked impressed. "Dude, when did you start playing a 12-string?"

"In diapers," Puck responded simply as he issued a test strum over the strings to make sure they were in tune.

I was holding you so tight and you were holding me

So wrapped up in the moment, I was feeling such security

The first few weeks felt just like heaven,

But we never really seemed to get that high

And now I sit here laughing at the time that passed me by

It's time, it's times like these when I'm down on my knees

Begging please, please don't go, no please don't go

His gaze was on Rachel as he began and she scowled at him. That brilliant, beautiful, absolutely infuriating scowl. He couldn't even bring himself to feel bad if she was going to go back to a tool like Finn. Then again, he hated himself for apparently always nailing Finn's leftovers—before they were even leftovers usually—so what could he say about it anyway?

And as you slipped away, I couldn't admit that we were through

And as you slipped away, I found I lost myself in search of you

I found I lost myself in search of you, in search of you

That part was a little gay. Maybe he should just start writing his own music for Glee club. Then again, he definitely should do it if he could maintain the whole train of thought while he was playing and singing at the same time. He fixed his glare on Santana, who was sitting back with her arms folded, her jaw clenched and giving him a look that could crack glass. _Good_.

I was holding you tight and you were holding him…

and him and him and him and him and her…

Now the only time I can hold you is in my mind

But that never seemed to fill me up inside

Oh and yes I felt lonely and yes I felt a need

And you seemed to feel it necessary to make me see

That I was wrong and you were right and that all my attempts were in vain

But I was pretty sure you'd turn around and want me back again

Puck's cold stare drifted over the other girls before they finally rested on Quinn. She had the same stick-up-her-ass expression as always as she coolly evaluated his words.

And as you slipped away, I couldn't admit that we were through

And as you slipped away, I found I lost myself in search of you

Found I lost myself in search of you, in search of you

Always in search of you, love

I was holding you so tightly when you needed help

I guess insecurities catch up to you when you're stupid

(and you lie and you're a whore)

But I never lied when I told you all that you could be

It was no use 'cause you slept with everybody else but me

Quinn's jaw dropped as he improvised the harsh words. He smirked in satisfaction as he smoothly turned to resume his pacing as he sang out the last part. Schue's face was a little red, but he hadn't been stopped yet either so he figured what the hell. He would at least finish out the last touchy-feely part. After all, the assignment was to pour out his heart. He couldn't help it if he didn't have one—or if it had been so overrun with things that supposedly were no-strings-attached. He was done with high school girls and their bullshit mind games.

I was holding you tight,

I'm always holding you so tight

And I'll never, ever let you go

And as you slipped away, I couldn't admit that we were through

And as you slipped away, I found I lost myself in search of you

As you slipped away, I couldn't admit that we were through

And as you slipped, I found I lost myself in search of you

You know I found I lost myself

When Puck finished the last note, he slapped his hands down over the strings to cut off the sound and he stooped to put the guitar back in its case.

Schue's eyebrows were raised and his voice was quiet as he gestured across the room. "Puck, my office."

Puck shrugged and swaggered off behind their teacher. It was like the horrified spell broke and everyone was set into motion at the same instant.

"Daaaaamnnnn." Mercedes drawled. "Which one of you was that directed at?"

"I think it was all of us," Quinn said. Her voice was quiet and Sam had an arm around her, rubbing her shoulder as he watched her stiffen even more than she normally did.

"He just called us _whores_," Rachel gasped out. She flicked a glance over his shoulder at Santana. "At least, he called one of us a whore. But I think he meant all of us."

Finn frowned. "Well…if he's calling you a whore, I'm going to kill him."

Rachel shook her head and looked over at Finn. "No, just leave it alone." She shrugged uncomfortably but she still gasped. "All of us have been horrible to him at one time or another. I suppose it had to come out sometime."

Quinn's voice was unsteady as she spoke, but her gaze at Santana was clear. "Only one of us has screwed him over at every possible turn."

Santana closed her eyes and banged her head on the wall that was right behind the chair. "It's not like he and I have ever been exclusive. He knows that I hook up. It's never been a secret. Not like him and Willow."

Finn and Rachel looked over their shoulders at the same time, with Rachel physically turning in her chair to meet Santana's cool gaze. Rachel shrugged. "You're only half right. I didn't really keep it a secret." She redirected her gaze to Finn. "But I used him, even if he knew that's what I was doing. I'm probably the worst one out of this whole group when it comes to that anyway." She swallowed hard and looked down.

"Oh, of _course_ you think he was singing about you." Quinn said sourly from her seat. She rolled her eyes as she finally rose and tossed her hands up in the air. "You're the only one who makes mistakes and certainly the only one who does things right. Isn't that it?"

She walked out of the room, leaving Sam uncertainly looking between the two girls, Rachel sitting in her chair with wide eyes, and Santana smirking from the back row.

Santana wished they sold tickets for this shit. She'd just watched an entire show from the dinner theater. It was her favorite part of being in glee club. Now she just had to figure out how she was going to make Puck pay for the kiss off and calling her an insecure whore.


	4. Chapter 3: Don't Keep Me Waiting

_A/N: So Glen Miller and about half of the big-band world are responsible for this song. Every place quotes a different source. The lyrics I took were from a website crediting the Andrews Sisters with vocals, Andy Rasaf with the words, and Joe Garland with the music. Glen Miller is the famous band that plays it though. And I would love to see Brittany and Mike dance like this in real life, even though I can't describe the dance-y picture in my head very well. Sorry for that. _

_Thanks for the reads, replies, follows, and favorites. Even if I don't respond to every single one because I'm still figuring out the etiquette involved, I want to say thank you for sure. I love hearing your honest thoughts and I'm not going to lie, I love that they've all been supportive and kind._

* * *

**Chapter 3: Don't Keep Me Waiting**

_Songs Used: No Other Way –Jack Johnson_

_In the Mood – Glen Miller_

* * *

Wednesday dawned grey and crappy. It wasn't actually snowing outside, but was overcast and every now and again the sky would blow little bits of snowflakes down, like it was just trying to remind them that it _could_ unleash at any moment. The weather forecaster had been threatening an ice storm of such massive proportions it would shut the world down without an ounce of notice, so everyone was on edge. The coaches who wanted to hold sports-related practices (not the least of which was Sue Sylvester who had Regionals coming up for the Cheerios), the kids who wanted to be out of school, the kids who didn't want to go home…

The glee club kids all hoped for their own reasons that the weather would hold until they'd finished their last period. Finn wanted Rachel to answer him in song. He knew nothing was going to go anywhere until she did her assignment. Sam had a song prepared for Quinn, who was one that didn't want to go home. Santana wanted to kick Puck right in the nuts and still get a grade for it—in other words, she wanted to sing today, too.

Schue didn't necessarily know all of these details as he walked into the choir room, fresh from a verbal entanglement with the delusional cheerleading coach, but he could feel the energy emanating from all of them. For some reason, the hockey team had declared open season on the glee kids just before the last period of the day began, muttering something dumb about how it was going to rain ice inside or out. When he walked in, Brittany was busy drying Artie off and Rachel was shivering in her chair even though she was wrapped up in Finn's oversized (for her) letterman's jacket; she had even pulled her legs up into the jacket and tight against her chest, so where it was buttoned at the bottom, her shoes stuck out and it made her look almost disembodied. Finn was pleading with her in a low voice to let him exact revenge and she was adamantly refusing.

In other words, it was your typical day in glee club and Will Schuester just hoped the room wouldn't spontaneously combust during the next hour. And for the second consecutive day, he wanted to kick himself for the assignment. He should've picked something more bitter.

Then again, Puck had kind of filled that role for him nicely. He had found it difficult to keep a straight face as he talked to the edgy student. The girls in the class had all been horrified, and Puck had known that would be the case. He had orchestrated all of it on purpose, and Schue found himself muttering something about how good a student Puck would be if he used all that manipulative energy toward his school work instead of pissing off girls. Puck had reminded him (because the school work had always been more Schue's specialty) that pissing off girls was a lot more fun.

The bell rang and Schue moved to his spot beside the piano. Brad, their normal pianist, was also the debate coach and had taken the debate team to a competition at Ohio State. They would be gone for the rest of the week, which meant Schue hoped he could stretch the assignment out. While he had learned how to sufficiently play the piano, he didn't particularly like to—he would rather be up moving around. And glee club depended on his mobility. When his hands were tied for any reason, the rambunctious lot of them tended to get into trouble.

He clapped his hands together. "All right—good afternoon everyone," he said. He rubbed his hands together. It was kind of cold in here. He wondered if Figgins had already turned down the heat in anticipation of everyone going home with the end goal of pinching some pennies. It hardly seemed fair to the kids who were the victims of the most recent social attacks. He looked over at Rachel with a frown. Her lips were turning blue. Artie didn't appear to be faring much better even though Brittany had climbed in his lap and was saying something that had set his cheeks on fire.

"Is it just me or is it cold in here?" He asked.

Rachel didn't answer, which alone was a testament to how cold she was, and Artie just laughed. Everyone else murmured their agreement.

"Okay, well, I just have one small thing to tell you. Kurt has graciously agreed to make our costumes for Regionals again, even though he's competing with another team, and he needs you all to either send him measurements or text him a time you can meet so he can get them. He has a few different ideas and he'll settle on something once we finish our set list."

"So we're not doing 'Time of Your Life' again, right?" Quinn asked. Her demeanor was as frosty as the room, as frosty as ever.

Schue tipped his head to the side. He couldn't tell if she was glad or if she was mad. "No. We might do it for Nationals if we get there, but we want something different for regionals, especially since sectionals ended in a tie. We're going to need all new routines."

Sam raised his hand cautiously. Schue pointed to him.

"Could we just make a mash-up of songs from the wedding a few months ago?"

Schue shook his head. "No. You guys seemed like you had a lot of fun doing those but there's no way we can compensate previous routines for losing Kurt unless we find a new member who can sing tenor like him." He cast a glance to Rachel. She wasn't saying anything? Was she sick? Or maybe was she dying?

He decided to test it. "One thing I _do_ know is that I think we should feature Brittany a little more heavily. Her song yesterday proved she's working hard to be a strong singer; we have a real opportunity to showcase her and I think we should do it."

The entire room froze. Even Finn looked cautiously over at Rachel, waiting for her to speak up in outrage. She had tucked her face down into the stretched neck on the jacket and wasn't moving, though. Finn glanced back up at the teacher and shrugged. Brittany was still looking at Schue like maybe she had swallowed a bug or something. She looked almost terrified.

"Well, if you're handing out solos, I'll kill one," Mercedes offered.

Schue chuckled. "I'll see what I can do," he offered. He took a deep breath and pressed his hands together tighter. "Okay, well I guess… moving on to our assignment. Anyone ready? " He looked around uncertainly. It wasn't his style to change the requirements after some of the group had gone, but he was a little bit afraid of what Santana had planned; that girl could be like The Firestarter when she was angry, and Puck had definitely lit a match.

Sam cast a glance over at Quinn before he pressed his hand into the air even as he stood. He was the only one really moving so it was pretty obvious he was the most anxious to go. "I'll go," he said. Schue nodded, relieved and moved to one of the empty chairs in the front row. It just so happened to be on the side of Rachel just opposite Finn and he could hear the co-captains talking back and forth privately. There was an edge to their interaction and he wondered for a second if Finn was going to get his heart handed back to him. Schue knew that feeling; it really, really sucked and he didn't wish it on anyone.

"Are you sure you're okay? Sam's getting ready to perform," Finn asked her anxiously.

"I can still hear," Rachel muttered testily, muffled by the layers of leather and cotton between her and the outside world. "I'll be fine. "

"Rach…"

"Finn," she replied sharply. "Stop hovering. I'm fine," she stated firmly. She pulled her face out of the coat. "My nose is cold." She turned her head and gave Finn a crooked little smile. Finn smiled back and tucked his arm around the back of her chair to pull her just a couple of inches closer.

Despite her protests, Schue knew she was absorbing the attention from Finn like a sponge. No heartbreak was imminent; Rachel was just being her typical, drama queen self even if it was in a more quiet way than normal. The only attention she was demanding or wanting was Finn's. It was kind of a nice change of pace, but he definitely wasn't going to say anything out loud.

Sam had pulled his guitar out of its case. So many of the kids had opted to go acoustic on this assignment, which was probably a good thing with the jazz band getting ready for their own competitions. He strummed the strings and started adjusting a little for sound. Sam seemed to favor a more relaxed sound, maybe even just slightly out of tune when he played. It was another thing that made him unique and Schue made a mental note to try bringing that forefront. There were so many talented kids in here and they all deserved a shot at the spotlight, didn't they?

"Okay, so I know we have this whole group incest thing going on here, but we're all still dealing with things everyone else doesn't know about," Sam started. "So I guess I'm pouring something out of my heart that I don't have the guts to say out loud and I hope it will land just right with someone."

His eyes flicked to Quinn, but it was so quick anyone who witnessed it could've been hallucinating. What could she possibly be going through now? She'd been through so much last year and had quietly reclaimed her throne now. It seemed impossible that something else could be threatening to drag her down. There had been no change in her basic demeanor or her attitude. Could it really be that easy to cover something up.

Schue glanced back over at her, sitting on the row one down from the back in the seat she normally occupied. She was watching Sam through hooded eyes but her expression was soft and her breathing was even as Sam started his song.

When your mind is a mess, so is mine, I can't sleep

'Cause it hurts when I think, my thoughts aren't at peace

With the plans that we make, chances we take

They're not yours, they're not mine

There's waves that can break

All the words that we said, the words that we mean

Words can fall short, can't see the unseen

'Cause the world is awake

He was looking down at the guitar, constantly checking his finger placement. He seemed nervous, like maybe he was trying to keep his eyes off of Quinn on purpose. She didn't want people to know she was struggling as her parents' divorce kicked up a notch. She had briefly thought about accelerating her way through summer school so she could graduate early and go live off-campus at Bowling Green. It was that bad. But she still didn't want anyone to know, and he knew that being with her was a code of silence—he had stumbled into the information accidentally when he realized she wasn't sleeping well at night and the only reason she didn't look tired was flawlessly applied makeup.

For somebody's sake now, please close your eyes

Woman, please get some sleep

Everyone in the class was sneaking covert glances at Quinn as she watched him sing. Her arms were folded but she didn't look angry. When he looked up at her, he realized the truth—she _did_ look tired. He wasn't really telling anyone anything they didn't already know.

And know that if I knew all of the answers I would

Not hold them from you, all of the things that I know

We told each other there is no other way

Too much silence can be misleading

You're drifting I can hear it in the way that you're breathing

We don't really need to find reason,

'Cause out the same door that it came, well it's leaving, it's leaving

Leaving like a day that's done with out of a season

Resolve is just a concept that's as dead as the leaves

She had taken a deep breath and was twisting her ring around on the ring finger of her right hand, where she had finally agreed to wear it as a compromise. He smiled a little. She wasn't mad. And it looked like maybe he was getting into that thick, thick skull of hers. Maybe she would relax and open up and rely on him.

But at least when we sleep, it's all that we need

When we wake, we will find our minds will be free to go to sleep

And know that if I knew all of the answers I would

Not hold them from you, all of the things that I know

We told each other there is no other way

That was the bottom line. He didn't know any other way to get through to her. She was stubborn, she was fierce, and she was a closed book. She didn't share, she didn't reveal, and she didn't rely on anyone else. His glance drifted over to Finn and Rachel who were rocking back and forth in time with the waves of music. If they could deal with all the crap they were dealing with (publicly, by the way, because Rachel was such a drama queen and Finn was such an idiot that everyone knew), Sam knew he and Quinn could get through their struggles. Privately.

As Sam muttered quiet thanks and a few kids offered their support (there was no criticism to be had in this instance), Rachel watched Finn.

Did he know that song was all she wanted out of a relationship? She wanted them to be able to talk about what was going on in their lives, instead of stomping off to resolve it alone. That was how they got into trouble the last time and what she wanted entirely to avoid this time around. That's why it was absolutely critical to start off on the right foot. That's why the song she'd finally found this morning was perfect.

But how could she even begin to explain?

Right about then, the jazz ensemble filed in rather suddenly, prompting the entire room to look to the door. Rachel sat up a little straighter, her legs still wrapped up inside Finn's jacket. She was still freezing.

They barely noticed when Mike and Tina filtered in behind them. Schue frowned—he hadn't noticed that two of his students were _missing_?

Brittany stood up and untangled herself from her coat. Once she did that, the bouncy blonde curls and bright red lipstick were obvious. Artie's jaw dropped. Schue's brow furrowed. Mike moved to the front of the room.

"Okay, so the Jazz band is trying to get ready for their competition and because they help us so much, we wanted to help them back by rehearsing what they'll be performing. Plus this song is perfect for Valentines Day," he said simply. He glanced over at Tina. "It's me pouring my heart out even though I can't sing."

Tina smiled widely and shook her head. Brittany and Mike moved into position. And the trumpets started off with a familiar call. Rachel's eyes grew wide, just like her smile, as Tina started singing the lyrics. This song always put her in a good mood. In fact, she found it physically impossible to be anything other than energetic and happy when this song was going.

Brittany had folded herself against Mike and with a flick of a wrist, he sent her flying as her feet started moving in time with the song.

Who's the lovin' daddy with the beautiful eyes  
What a pair o' lips, I'd like to try 'em for size  
I'll just tell him, "Baby, won't you swing it with me"  
Hope he tells me maybe, what a wing it will be  
So, I said politely "Darlin' may I intrude"  
He said "Don't keep me waitin' when I'm in the mood"

Mike moved over to Tina, dancing around her more than with her as she sang and watched him, keeping perfect time and tune with the fast words even though there was a huge grin on her face. Brittany moved over to where Artie was parked in the front row, bending down even as she continued to move her legs and feet to the rhythm of the song. She planted a kiss on his cheek, leaving an obvious red lipstick stain behind as she tousled his hair.

First I held him lightly and we started to dance  
Then I held him tightly what a dreamy romance  
And I said "Hey, baby, it's a quarter to three  
There's a mess of moonlight, won't-cha share it with me"  
"Well" he answered "Baby, don't-cha know that it's rude  
To keep my two lips waitin' when they're in the mood"

In the mood, that's what he told me  
In the mood, and when he told me  
In the mood, my heart was skippin'  
It didn't take me long to say "I'm in the mood now"

Brittany moved back to Mike and they resumed their complicated dance as Tina bounced in time and continued singing with more confidence than she'd probably ever displayed. Rachel finally unbuttoned Finn's jacket and put her feet on the ground, only to then stand and turn on the spot. She took his hands and started a rather hesitantly shaking her shoulders in time with the boisterous music. He was watching her with amused curiosity and just trying to keep up. Schue noted that it was an apt metaphor for their entire relationship as he watched the couple next to him thaw, followed by the rest of the room.

Before long, everyone was down front, dancing swing with various degrees of skill. Puck had a look on his face like he thought it was all rather lame, but he was spinning Artie's chair in fast circles all the same. And he was almost successful at hiding his laughter.

So, I said politely "Darlin' may I intrude"  
He said "Don't keep me waitin' when I'm in the mood"

"Well" he answered "Baby, don't-cha know that it's rude  
To keep my two lips waitin' when they're in the mood"

Who's the lovin' daddy with the beautiful eyes  
What a pair o' lips, I'd like to try 'em for size  
I'll just tell him, "Baby, won't you swing it with me"  
Hope he tells me maybe, what a wing it will be  
So, I said politely "Darlin' may I intrude"  
He said "Don't keep me waitin' when I'm in the mood"

First I held him lightly and we started to dance  
Then I held him tightly what a dreamy romance  
And I said "Hey, baby, it's a quarter to three  
It's a mess of moonlight, won't-cha share it with me"  
"Well" he answered "Baby, don't-cha know that it's rude  
To keep my two lips waitin' when they're in the mood"

Some of the kids knew the words, some of the kids knew some of the words, and some knew none of the words so they were in various degrees of singing along and were all laughing by the time the drummer's last cymbal roll signaled the end of the song.

Schue had been dancing with Santana and weaving amongst them as their pairs casually shifted back and forth, easily the one with the most skill when it came to this type of dancing (or at least closely matching Brittany and Mike). As soon as the music cut off, he clapped his hands together and called over the riotous laughter and pats on the back being given to the instigators of the song.

"All right, all right!" He hollered and they turned toward him. "Next week's assignment is to mash that one up with something because we're taking it to Regionals!" The bell sounded to signal the end of the period, the end of the day.

Amongst the whoops and hollers of approval and the immediate discussion that was launched and feeding off the energy in the room, Schue noticed it didn't feel so cold anymore. He was in the mood for all of it – for Valentine's Day, for love, and even for Regionals. He knew he was supposed to inspire something in them, in these kids he taught every day. Instead, they had inspired something in him. He noticed Rachel motioning to his office, even as she managed to chat happily with Mercedes on her way out the door. She would be back, she said with her eyes.

He wondered what it was that made them all so resilient. With everything they had been through, and everything they had put themselves and each other through, they were all still laughing and singing and chatting. They were friends. Even though this week was hard on him and he was feeling a little bereft and a lot like he needed a strong drink, maybe _that_ was the point. Maybe asking someone to be yours was as simple as asking them to be your _friend_, no romance necessary. His eyes flicked to the clock. Could he maybe just steal a second with Emma before Rachel came back? He could only try, but he knew he couldn't wait a minute longer.


	5. Chapter 4: Something Else Entirely

A/N: _Running short on time at the moment, but I wanted to get the last two parts of this story up because the last part especially was always meant for Valentine's Day. Thanks for the replies, follows, favorites, etc. with this. It's been a fun little story to write as I've gotten to know these characters in a whole new way._

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**Chapter 4: Something Else Entirely**

_ Song used: Just the Way You Are – Bruno Mars_

Having been denied the ice storm, and largely escaping the shitstorm that could easily follow such a paired-off group on the verge of a romantic holiday, the entire group of kids were at least two full notches above the normal crazy on Thursday afternoon. Kurt's eyes were wide as he looked around at his former peers. He wasn't sure he remembered it being like this before class was called to order, but he hadn't ever felt like a bona fide, card carrying member either. Maybe that was the big difference. He had slowed to a stop as his eyes adjusted to the handful of vignettes playing out before him, noting individuals' actions. Tyson seemed to be doing the same thing behind him. It was a very, very different feel from the Warblers meetings.

And just what in the hell was Brittany doing with a deck of cards out in the middle of class, in the middle of the school day?

He grasped at the nylon strap of his backpack and glanced over his shoulder at the reason he was here. Well… okay. _Half_ the reason.

"Okay, this way," he said simply to Tyson. The tall junior followed him, clearly uncertain at the energy in the room as well. Tyson was a member of the Warblers, and in fact also a community theater veteran at the age of seventeen, but everything here was different. As Kurt cut across the front of the room and Tyson followed, they started to garner some attention. Uniforms will do that. At least they hadn't brought the whole group in… yet. They hadn't wanted to be too conspicuous.

The pair made it to Will Schuester's office before they could decipher any of the quiet, curious chatter issued by the glee club members.

"Kurt?" Schue asked in surprise. He rose from his desk and extended his hand. Kurt was slightly uncertain of the gesture—he hadn't exactly been absent from New Directions even since his transfer. But here the teacher was, acting like his presence was some sort of a shocking honor. Kurt smirked to himself. He and Rachel really did have similar vocabularies.

"Hey, Schue. This is Tyson Smith." Kurt gestured with his full hand, palm up, to the boy beside him. "Tyson, this is Mr. Schuester, the director of New Directions." Tyson extended a hand but offered no words.

"What can I help you with?" Schue asked. The bell rang and he gave a slow drawl of a smile. "I was just about to get class started."

"Well, that's actually part of the reason I'm here," Kurt began by way of introduction. "As you know, I'm good friends with Mercedes and she came to me a few days ago with some huge concerns."

"Uh-huh?" Will asked, raising his eyebrows and clearly still listening even as he didn't seem particularly interested.

"Well, Tyson here has a little crush on Mercedes. So when she told me about your assignment for this week, and how she didn't think it would be fair for her to do it considering the person she wanted to sing to wouldn't be there, we had an idea. We want to surprise her with a little serenade. We promise not to take up too much of your class time," Kurt pitched, his head moving emphatically as he tried to keep his voice light.

Schue nodded. "Okay. Well…most of the class has already gone so it shouldn't be a problem. We were probably just going to spend some time working on next week's assignment anyway."

Kurt squeezed his fists together and pumped them into the air. He managed to suppress the threatening squeal. "Thank you!"

Tyson was getting to be pretty good friends with Kurt, but was almost like a counterpoint. He was more reserved, a little quieter, and he just raised his eyebrows at his friend's exuberance.

"Go grab the rest of the guys," Kurt said. He smiled as Tyson nodded. Kurt stayed in the office for a minute as Schue excused himself. Once he heard the sounds of arpeggios from the piano, he strolled out, still comfortable enough with their usual routines to join in the warmup exercises.

Rachel had known he was coming and she offered a perky little wave. He winked at her, singing through his grin. She cast a glance up to Finn, who was standing next to her but also watching Kurt with confusion on his face. Rachel was the _only_ one who'd known he was coming. He watched with surprise as she stepped away from Finn and came over to rest her hand around Kurt's waist. He tucked his arm around her shoulder easily, by now not needing to issue his joke about how she fit in his arms like a doll.

By the time warmup exercises were finished, everyone had noticed Kurt was there and they were all surrounding him like a friendship cloud. He had to seriously lean over to see Tyson and Blaine leading the rest of the Warblers and where they had all stopped to hesitate in the doorway.

Kurt waved them in. "Okay, everyone, sit down for a minute." He turned to rest his backpack on the floor. "We have a little surprise for one of you."

As Kurt had turned to remove his backpack, Rachel reached up for Mercedes' shoulders and pushed the girl back toward the front row of chairs. Once they were there, Rachel hurried to separate one chair from the rest and making it obvious who the 'one of you' was.

Mercedes' eyes were wide and her smile was even wider once she saw Tyson emerge from the sea of blue and red. Kurt had casually included Tyson in nearly every aspect of their hanging out since he had first started at Dalton. It hadn't been extraordinarily difficult. Tyson was quiet, but not exactly shy. He was easy going and everything necessary to off-set a strong, willful diva like Mercedes. Kurt had, of course, known it all along; Rachel had confirmed it after a coffee date that Mercedes hadn't even attended. And now, on the verge of one of his favorite holidays, Kurt was going to watch all of it come together. It would be perfect.

The all-male group's vocals warmed into a comfortable mezzo-forte volume before they broke loose and started moving their feet a bit. As the familiar words intoned, Mercedes' jaw dropped. Tyson had never actually taken lead on vocals before; it was a huge point of discussion between the two of them. He was far more comfortable with the background than she was, but there was nothing background about him. He was doing it now, even if he seemed a little shy about it at first. The rich chocolate color of his skin easily hid any embarrassment or nervousness he was feeling, especially as he spun around on one foot in a perfectly smooth circle.

_Oh her eyes her eyes__  
__Make the stars look like they're not shining__  
__Her hair her hair__  
__Falls perfectly without her trying__  
_

Finn's jaw dropped, too. Kurt wasn't actually singing with the group but was standing off to the side and moving in time with the music with a smile on his face. Rachel was standing next to him, still holding on. Finn shook his head and Kurt caught him. Psh—stealing his song, stealing his girl. Ridiculous. Kurt motioned to him to come stand where he and Rachel were swaying. Finn rolled his eyes and agreed, knowing he would never actually live it down if he didn't.

_She's so beautiful__  
__And I tell her every day_

_Yeah I know I know__  
__When I compliment her__  
__She won't believe me__  
__And it's so, it's so__  
__Sad to think that she don't see what I see__  
_

_But every time she asks me "Do I look okay?"__  
__I'll say__  
_

Tyson had crept over to where Mercedes was sitting, still dancing and bouncing in time with the background beat provided by varying levels of vocal effort, almost singing right in her face as she leaned forward in her chair to dance and smile up at him. He took two giant steps back to fold more toward the main body of the group as he hit the main part of the song again, singing in a flash of even, white teeth with a wide-open mouth. The girl he wanted was a belter—which meant he had to be one, too, if he was ever going to hold his own with her.

_When I see your face__  
__There's not a thing that I would change__  
__Cause you're amazing__  
__Just the way you are__  
__And when you smile__  
__The whole world stops and stares for a while__  
__Cause girl you're amazing__  
__Just the way you are__  
_

When they had decided to try this (or rather, when Kurt had decided to try this and insisted Tyson should serenade Mercedes in the first place), they had asked Rachel for help with the staging of it. Without knowing exactly what song he was going to perform, despite multiple sharply worded requests for the information, she had simply advised him to pull Mercedes up into the group at some point where he could plant a perfect stage kiss on her. So knowing what lyrics were coming next, he moved back toward her, finally taking both her hands, his heart soaring as she willingly played along and moved with him toward the front of the room. He was emboldened a little by her cooperation and placed his index finger on her mouth as he sang the next words, a little more quietly.

_Yeah her lips her lips__  
__I could kiss them all day if she'd let me__  
__Her laugh her laugh__  
__She hates but I think it's so sexy__  
__She's so beautiful__  
__And I tell her everyday__  
_

Rachel was watching with a grin a mile wide. As soon as Mercedes had moved toward the front of the room with Tyson, it had loosened up the rest of the New Directions crowd. They were respectfully staying seated (except Rachel and Kurt who had never been seated in the first place, and Finn who had come to stand by them off to the side at their non-verbal requests), but all were dancing along in their chairs. Brittany had her hands up and was snapping her fingers. As Tyson dropped his volume, the rest of the Warblers, who were singing what could only be described as beatboxing and accompaniment, caught the hint and dropped their volume. Finn leaned over to Kurt.

"You let them steal my wedding solo?" He asked, his arms folded but his expression mostly relaxed and teasing as he leaned down to hear Kurt's answer.

"I didn't really have a say in the song selection," Kurt admitted. "Besides, I'm not performing _with_ them."

"Dude, he's doing it better than I am. Do you know how embarrassing that is?"

Kurt looked over, his cheeks a little flushed even as he issued a huge smile. "No. I've never had that problem."

Finn gave him a little shove and shook his head even as he laughed. "Whatever."

Kurt stepped back over next to Finn. "Look at Mercedes, though. She's happy."

Finn nodded. "Yeah, totally worth it. I'm not going to have to kill this guy at some point, am I?"

Kurt shook his head. "No, no. He's good." Finn just nodded his response while the performance was continuing without their attention.

_The way you are__  
__The way you are__  
__Girl you're amazing__  
__Just the way you are_

_When I see your face__  
__There's not a thing that I would change__  
__Cause you're amazing__  
__Just the way you are__  
__And when you smile__  
__The whole world stops and stares for a while__  
__Cause girl you're amazing__  
__Just the way you are_

The background vocals stopped on a dime, and the New Directions kids erupted into frantic applause. Even though they were technically competitors, Kurt's defection had woven them together as friends and it was never more apparent than when they all drifted toward each other and the two groups intermingled with pats on the backs and "Nice!"-like compliments wafting everywhere.

"Maybe you should just come back and bring _all of them _with you," Rachel said wistfully as she replaced her arm around Kurt's waist.

He looked over at her. "Yeah, but this way I have a fighting chance of getting a solo at some point."

She laughed and shook her head. Finn looked over at them, his stepbrother and friend… and his Rachel. There was no other way he could describe her. Although at the wedding, he had technically declared that song to be for Kurt and more like a pop friendship anthem, he had really been singing to his mom and Rachel, too.

And even though the it was totally different right now, he still felt that way about her. Her eyes met his and she closed her mouth but kept smiling. He couldn't tell from that smile if she was planning to answer him today, but with all the promise in her eyes, he knew she hadn't exactly forgotten.

"Is there someone in here by the name of Noah Puckerman?" An unfamiliar voice cut through the dissonance of so many voices in the space designed to let voices carry, earning the attention of nearly everyone that was nearby.

It was man holding a huge vase full of red roses.

Puck, his face pure confusion, walked over. "Well, here I am." The delivery man pushed the vase forward.

Puck scowled. "Seriously?"

"Yes, sir," the delivery man. He gave the vase he was holding a little shake. "Take them."

Puck was too stunned to disobey and stood there watching suspiciously as the man left. "What the hell?" Puck asked, looking around the equally confused faces in the room. "All right, who thinks they're funny? Because this will not go unanswered."

Rachel strode over with purpose and began rooting through the flowers. She retrieved the card and held it out. "Well, obviously whomever sent these was not looking for retribution. Maybe they're looking for affection. It's kind of that time of year."

Finn frowned. Was it really necessary for Rachel to help Puck out with any of it? He sighed. He wanted to be past that. How could her standing just inches away from Puck instantly set him on edge that way?

Kurt was watching Finn closely as the conversation played out. The roses were "With all my love, Lauren" and Rachel was first in the line of glee girls who were trying to figure out who Lauren was (because they could totally only think of one and Oh My God, why would she be sending Puck flowers?).

"You know, if you're jealous of him or you're still mad about all that, you're kind of an idiot," Kurt said bluntly.

Finn looked over at him and answered honestly even though his voice dropped to a more one-on-one volume. "Well then I'm kind of an idiot. I'm trying not to be. I just wish she would give me _something_."

He hadn't been able to talk about this with anyone. He didn't have any intention of doing it now and besides, the Warblers were starting to edge toward the door because they all had to get back to school.

Kurt let out a huffy little breath, his eyes trained on the same spot Finn's were. He tried really hard not to flinch as Puck started doling out roses from the vase, giving each girl two or three. Kurt especially tried not to flinch when Puck gave the first handful to Rachel, and Rachel offered her verbal thanks but tossed a cautious little doe-eyed glance to Finn, testing the waters. It was all over in a split second, but that didn't necessarily make it better. "She's kind of already given it to you."

"What do you mean?" Finn asked. His throat was somewhere in his stomach and he was trying so hard not to flip out that the words came out lower and almost like a growl. He vaguely recognized that Blaine kid that was approaching Kurt now, even as Blaine's steps slowed so he wouldn't interrupt the conversation.

"Are you waiting for her to make a gesture? Because I'm pretty sure you ripped her heart right out of her chest when you broke up with her." Kurt shrugged as he started to move toward Blaine. He finally made eye contact with Finn. "The way I see it, and the way I think she sees it? You still have it. The question is what _you're_ going to do with it. And if you let something like that stand in your way, I guess you are as dumb as everyone gives you credit for."

Finn wanted to smack the smug little grin right off Kurt's face as Kurt then offered a wave that was no more than the tips of his fingers. "Ta! See you at home!"

Instead, he diverted his gaze to Rachel. Whether or not what Kurt said was true, they had a back and forth. He knew her at least that well—she would answer him in song. The longer she waited, the more nervous he was about it. As he watched her, someone sitting down caught the corner of his eye. Santana had pulled away from the group and was sitting in the chair Mercedes had formerly occupied with a smirk on her face. The other glee girls were still gathered around Puck, busily chattering about the flowers and what it could mean. A sly grin spread across Finn's face as he saw the look on Santana's face.

It meant Puck had been set up. Puck had enough problems without Finn being jealous about Rachel. Finn could just focus on getting his girl back. Funny how his thoughts always came back to Rachel. He looked back at her.

No, it wasn't funny. It was something else entirely.


	6. Chapter 5: Celebrate and Appreciate

**A/N: **_The last part of 'the way I wish things would play out'. *sigh* Hope you enjoyed it with me. I cannot believe I'm saying this with a straight face, but Happy Valentines Day!_

_

* * *

_

**Chapter 5: Celebrate and Appreciate **

_ Song Used: Valentine by Kina Grannis_

Rachel sat in the chair, her legs stretched out and kept her head down to hide the smile. She could hear Finn and Mike talking as they came down the hall toward the choir room, undoubtedly something about the basketball game they had this afternoon. They had to leave the last class period early on account of the away game to be played at Carmel High. She had debated if she was going to blow off her play rehearsal and show up to the game, but it didn't matter.

Before he left, she would sing for him. And maybe she would just invite him over after dinner for homework. Her dads had play tickets tonight so they would have an early dinner and be gone until fairly late tonight. It was Friday and to them, who worked normal hours, the weekend still meant something. They didn't have play rehearsal early and quite likely all day tomorrow. They could go out and be normal on a Friday night, which meant she and Finn could stay _in._

She let out a breath. It was short notice, but she wanted Finn to go to the Sweethearts dance with her on Saturday. She wanted him to go to everything. She just had to find a way to communicate that and still try to phrase it in the form of a question. She was working on her bossiness, but it didn't change the fact she knew exactly how she wanted all this to play out.

Rachel had stayed frozen to her chair after he sang his heart out on Monday. He watched her carefully as she blinked tears down her cheeks, but they weren't sad tears. Although she _could_ cry on demand, there was nothing in her control about her reaction to his song. She could tell as she felt his eyes on her that he wanted to kiss her, but he let the moment pass because they were surrounded by the other glee kids. He had exhausted his courage when it came to the song; he didn't have it in him to violate all his own wishes for privacy by kissing her in front of the group they spent all their time with.

No one else had prepared their assignment yet on Monday, so they got down to work and walked through several potential numbers for regionals. She had still felt his eyes on her as they all sang together and had noticed but neglected to point out the pitch errors made by other students. Twice she actually tripped over her own feet and she didn't miss Quinn rolling her eyes when she noticed that if a guy threw affection towards Rachel, Rachel acted all goofy and weird.

That night she had breezed right through her musical rehearsal; it had lasted extra long as they were learning the choreography for the end of the first part. It was chaos involving all the leads, the supporting cast members like Rachel, and the entire chorus. Her dad reported Finn had stopped by, but had only been able to wait approximately an hour before he had to go home. It had been basically the same report throughout the week. In Glee, though, he didn't seem angry or act like he thought she was avoiding him. And she wasn't—she had just overfilled her life in his absence and she had to see her commitments through. Plus she needed the time to figure out exactly what she was going to say and how she wanted to say it.

On Wednesday during her study period she'd finished her report on Watergate for AP History ahead of schedule; she had taken to a desperate internet search, hoping she could find a song. Once she found it, it was perfect and the idea that completed it was amazing. She hoped she could pull it off.

So just two days later, with Schue's help and a YouTube tutorial (on which the play button could've used a rape whistle by the time she was done), she felt as prepared as she was going to get. He had been first and most everyone else had already gone, so she felt it appropriate that she be last. If she wasn't good at getting the last word, she wasn't good at anything.

Finn and Mike's conversation had grown louder until now when they were in the choir room and still talking. All the other kids had arrived, too, and the acoustically sound room was a cacophony of sound. Today was officially Valentine's Day, after all. Maybe it was the extra candy or maybe the smell of flowers made them high, but for whatever reason the room was hypercharged once everyone was there.

Rachel, on the other hand, was nervous.

It wasn't a familiar feeling to her, walking around with her heart in her stomach. She couldn't say she liked it, either. Finn ended his conversation with Mike and sat down next to her. He got her attention by bumping his shoulder against hers gently. She dragged her eyes up to his face and smiled.

"Hey," he said simply, smiling in response to her smile.

"Hey," she echoed.

"Your turn today?" He asked, his tone cautious and maybe a little pleading, too.

She nodded, her smile brightening even as her stomach clenched a little. "Mm-hmm."

He raised an eyebrow. "Do I get to know anything about it?"

"All right guys, let's get started."

Bless Mr. Schuester. He seemed to appear out of thin air to start class right as Rachel was on the verge of blabbing everything. And here she'd thought she wouldn't be able to keep a secret. Everyone's attention jerked toward their teacher, who was wearing an uncharacteristic black t-shirt with Guinness in a faint gold-ish print and a pair of jeans. She was torn between commenting that it was far different and more edgy, almost moodier, than his usual attire in the appropriate holiday-related colors and reporting him for wearing an alcoholic name brand to school.

He directed them through their vocal warmup exercises and made a few announcements about narrowing down song selections for regionals. Over the week they'd come up with a few possibilities and, with just a few weeks to go until the competition, they really needed to work hard to 'make it a ten'.

"But first, there's one more 'Pour Your Heart Out' assignment," Schue said. Rachel had that sudden, nauseating surge again. What was she thinking? This song was so out of character for her. It was soft, it was mellow, and it was sweet—three things she wasn't sure were in her range.

Finn looked over at her expectantly and she felt herself blush to match the color of her soft, knit sweater. If she wasn't careful, she would match the tiny red hearts on her knee socks. He motioned to her—she was pretty sure he'd actually said her name and given her some sort of an introduction, but she hadn't heard any of it over the sound of her own blood rushing through her ears—and the next thing she knew, she was pushing herself off the chair, desperately trying to avoid looking at Finn as confusion settled over his face when she just walked away.

She went to Schue's office, where he had left his guitar propped up against the low baseboard just inside the door according to his words as she'd left their practice session the night before. She knew from talking it over with him that Finn had tried to learn to play guitar for the song he'd sung; he simply didn't have time.

She draped the strap over her shoulder and adjusted it where necessary. She noticed she'd caught the hem of her blush and cream plaid wool skirt with the guitar. Was that kind of like tucking your shirt into your pantyhose on the sliding 'most embarrassing moments' scale? She was glad she noticed and gave a healthy stomp to shift the short skirt back into proper position before she left the office.

She played quickly through the three notes she needed, by now familiar under her tender fingertips—A, D, and F-sharp minor. The song started right in time with the music so there was no easing into it.

The next, more certain strum started with her singing. That part came more easily and she found herself immediately at-home. Performing was where she was meant to be; he was the only audience that mattered. She looked up at him to address him directly; he was watching her with nothing short of amazement and maybe relief all over his face. She tried not to grin as she saw him visibly relax. Maybe he had been as nervous for this as she was.

_Love, it's a special day_  
_We should celebrate and appreciate_

_That you and me found something pretty neat_

_And I know some say this day is arbitrary_

_But it's a good excuse, put our love to use_

Her voice grew stronger. This she could do, and this part was her _knowing_ what to do. This was where she was most certain. And it had everything to do with him being there, watching. It was all about what she was promising again, and she knew this time around what to avoid. She knew a little better how to live up to her own words.

_Baby I know what to do, baby I_

_I will love you, I'll love you, I'll love you_

She couldn't fight the smile as he looked at her just like he did at regionals last year. Partly like he wanted to throw up as he admitted he loved her, and partly like he really, really wanted to kiss her. She loved that look. She loved the boy wearing it. She wandered over until she was directly in front of him, and her voice lowered on the familiar notes as she sang the next part right to him. She dropped her head to look at her fingers and make sure they were in the right spots on the fret of the guitar, then back to him and as if it was just the two of them talking.

_Love, I don't need those things_

_I don't need no ring, I don't need anything_

_But you with me…'Cause in your company_

_I feel happy, oh so happy, complete_

She backed away and wandered, one foot behind the other, as she played and started into the chorus again, now singing confidently and playing like a pro as she walked. It was easy to sing with conviction when you were pouring your heart out, though. That's how she knew Finn had meant everything he said before and then again through his song, and everything he hadn't said but had still managed to express. They had made it through. And now they could celebrate Valentine's Day—or any other holiday together. All they needed was each other.

_And it's a good excuse to put our love to use_

_Baby I know what to do, baby I_

_I will love you, I'll love you, I'll love you_

_Yeah, it's a good excuse, put our love to use_

_Baby I know what to do, baby I_

_I will love you, I will love you, I'll love you_

_So won't you be my honeybee, giving me kisses all the time?_

_You might be my valentine._

_So won't you be my honeybee, giving sweet kisses all the time?_

_Be my, be my valentine_

_Whoa-oh, be my valentine._

Granted, she had found a song that expressed what she was feeling, what she was promising, and above all, what she was asking. But it didn't change the fact that it was still a question. She was asking him to be hers. And, at long last, she was demanding an answer. He had sung his heart out in front of God (seriously, that's how Puck typically referred to himself on a regular basis) and everyone, now she was returning the favor. As she strummed the last careful notes and finished up with the muted request, she watched him carefully. He was sitting up in his chair and had tipped forward to put his elbows on his knees. He was watching her steadily, seriously. His knee was bouncing, like he was anxious for something. As she placed her hand flat on the guitar strings to stop them from resonating, he was up and out of his chair. He crossed the room from the side he sat on to the middle where she stood in four easy strides. He gently pulled the guitar strap away from her body and turned to hand Schue the guitar before he wrapped her up in a great big bear hug.

"I already was," he said simply as he hunched over to hold her close to him, pressing her into his chest. "I always was."

As he pulled away, instead of releasing her, he fumbled to cradle her jaw in his hands and he kissed her. It was not sweet like the tentative kiss in her driveway last week, it was certain and familiar and exhilarating. She lost all track of time and place when he kissed her like that until a crumpled up ball of paper hit the side of her head.

"Enough!" Mercedes said as she replaced the notebook in her backpack. She was grinning like an idiot who had just watched the sappy ending to a rom com, though, and neither her words nor actions stung in the slightest. The room around them was already buzzing with activity, the implied respect of someone performing wearing off and the students all coming back to life slowly.

They pulled away from each other. Rachel needed to blink a couple of times and Finn sighed heavily. He smiled like she smiled when they looked at each other. Finn's eyes darted to the analog clock above the wall.

"Shit, I gotta go anyway. Are you coming to the game? It's the last one," he asked and then reminded, hoping she would agree even though he knew better. Rachel shook her head; he knew she had rehearsal immediately after school. He tugged affectionately on one loose curl of her hair. "Damn. Okay, then I'll call you later?" She was kind of aware of Mike standing and cutely waving his goodbye to Tina, too.

She nodded in response. "You better," she said, unable to fight her smile.

"Well now that we've made up in front of everyone, I think we need to…you know… make up."

"Make out?" She asked, smiling inwardly as his cheeks flushed a little bit.

"Thanks a lot, Rach. Now I'm going to totally blow it in the game." His smile was goofy, and she understood his sentiment at least. There were few times in her life that Rachel Berry had phoned in a performance, but she had a feeling her rehearsal for the OSU-L musical would be like that today; she was going to be flying too high to come back down, especially with the promise that he'd be calling her later.

Schue was returning from putting the guitar on its stand in his office. "All right, basketball team members and Cheerios, get outta here already!" He said in a huff. Most of them were moving to do so anyway.

Finn snuck in one last brief kiss before he slung his backpack over his shoulder and left to catch the bus, tossing a flat handed wave behind him toward the room-at-large as he went.

Schue looked at Rachel. "Nicely done," he said simply in her direction. "It didn't look anybody else got much commentary in before Finn took over."

She was blushing furiously. Good thing it was down to four people in the room, and she was actually friends with them. Well, sort of.

"I tried walking and playing guitar once, but it didn't work out so well," Artie joked awkwardly. It was enough to break the embarrassed silence and they all laughed together.

And now that Rachel's distraction was cleared up, she turned to face Schue squarely. "Okay, and what is this nonsense about giving Brittany a solo at regionals? You're joking about that, right?"

He burst out laughing at her non-sequitor. She really had been out of it for the past week—he'd been making that joke for at least that long trying to get a rise out of Rachel. Poor Brittany had burst into tears in his office this morning because she thought Rachel was going to plant a bomb in her locker if he kept the joke going any longer.

"Yes, I was joking about that. I never said a _vocal_ solo. It will be a dance solo. She and Artie have been working very hard on something." He shrugged easily. "The groups we're going up against don't have the quality of dancing that Brittany and Mike have. It will give us a competitive edge. I was thinking we could open with that instead of having a couples' duet that enters from outside the auditorium."

Rachel nodded. "Well, as long as Ken and Barbie aren't ruining a song from one of my favorite movie soundtracks, I appreciate your creative direction," she commented. He raised his eyebrows. Rachel wasn't going argue? It was highly unlike her.

What he didn't know was she was already busy planning everything she and Finn would have the free time to do if they were together again…and weren't the headlining duet… maybe they could actually enjoy their weekends for a while instead of working their guts out.

She had learned to relax and to cherish their time together. And she didn't want to miss a moment. She didn't want to miss a thing. She gasped.

"What?" Mercedes asked, the flat syllable annoyed. She knew that look—Rachel had an idea and was about to take it to an extreme.

"Aerosmith," Rachel said suddenly. She looked over at Schue, whose face lit up.

"Aerosmith," he repeated.

"I should've told Brittany I like Love on an Elevator," Artie said sadly. Their heads whipped to him. "Well, you all heard her ask if there were any explicit songs I like. That was the first song I learned to play on a guitar."

"Remember how well 'Push It' went over?" Rachel said, mocking and sour at the same time. "Let's not repeat that, okay?"

Artie laughed out loud. "Yeah, that could be bad."

"All right, you three, why don't we go look through the database and see what we can do for a mashup?" Schue said dryly as he retrieved his keys to the back room out of his pocket and flipped them around on the keyring.

"It wouldn't be Valentine's Day without 'Pink'!" Mercedes suggested.

"Pink is my favorite color!" Rachel gasped. It was obvious she didn't know the song, because she didn't launch right into a diatribe laced with moral outrage at the suggestion they sing such a dirty song.

"It will still be Regionals without it!" Schue said in response to Mercedes, pausing at the door way that would lead them down the hall that adjoined the choir room and the band room. All the sheet music for the two was stored in between in a series of rooms that lined the hallway. They all groaned and continued into the back to see what they could find.

If "Pink" was really that dirty, Rachel had found her evening soundtrack anyway. She was going to sneak a peek at it. Happy Valentines Day and Be Mine, indeed.


End file.
